


If You Ask Me To... (Prompt catch-all)

by WolfStar4



Category: Grimm (TV), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Once Upon a Time (TV), Supernatural, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Alternate Universe - The Little Mermaid, Based on a Tumblr Post, Brotp, F/M, Gen, Gift Fic, M/M, OTP Feels, Other, Prompt Fic, Prompt Fill, Tumblr Ask Box Fic, Tumblr Prompt, Tumblr: otpprompts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-09
Updated: 2014-08-02
Packaged: 2018-02-08 04:21:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 10,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1926519
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfStar4/pseuds/WolfStar4
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ficlets written in response to prompts I have received via Tumblr.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. And Baby Makes Three (A Tinkerbae Fic)

**Author's Note:**

> I am always accepting prompts, especially for fluff, at SenoritaEspanola.   
> All of these properties are owned by their respective companies.

Written for Maddiebonanafana, who wanted a Tinkerbae Baby floof

* * *

 

"Another push or two should do it!" Doctor Whale calls from his place between Tinker Bell's ankles. Tink makes a whimpering sound in the back of her throat as she falls back onto the pillow.

"It's okay, you can do it!" Tink looks at her husband, Neal. Concern is etched in his face as he wipes her face with a damp cloth, and he squeezes his hand with all her strength; he doesn't flinch, but she knows it probably hurts... but not nearly as much as trying to get this baby out, apparently. There's a change in pressure.

"It's a girl!" Doctor Whale calls up, and Neal kisses Tink's forehead. A few moments later, a startled cry comes from the child as she's checked over. Neal eases his wife back onto the bed with a kiss to her temple. 

"Good job, honey. I'm proud of you!" She smiles tiredly, still breathing in shallow pants.

"That doesn't change the fact she doesn't have a name yet..." 

"I thought we were going to do the Fairy traditions?" 

"We are, but you haven't explained that to your father... I don't know how he's going to take her not having a name for eight days." Neal concedes her point, bobbing his head as the nurse hands a tiny bundle to Tink. The little girl's uncoordinated hands smack herself in the face, causing her father to chuckle. 

"Wow..." he breathes as Tink begins to feed her. Tink says nothing, as she is memorizing everything about the baby: her perfect little fingers, her tiny eyelashes, her wisps of dark blonde hair, her dark blue eyes that Tink secretly hopes will be green like her own... "She's so beautiful," Neal says quietly, gently stroking his daughter's cheek with his thumb. "Henry's gonna love her!" Tink smiles.

"Oh, I know he will!"


	2. It's A Kind Of Magic (Teddy Lupin)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written in response to this Tumblr musing: 
> 
> Muggleborn kid with a talent for magic. Not real magic. Like, sleight of hand magic. And then a prefect catches them doing something like making a ball appear to vanish or whatever, and just loses their shit because this 11 year old kid has utterly mastered Vanishing Spells and what the hell how is that even possible.

Prefect Teddy Lupin knew that whenever a group of first years were gathered around something, it was usually not good. He quietly crept up on the group, and finds them all gathered around a young Ravenclaw. If he recalled correctly, her name was Desdemona, and she was Muggleborn. She chatted amicably with her audience, asking for something else to work with. Somebody tossed her a Remembrall, which she rolled around in her hands, telling a story about a swami she once met in Soho. At one point, she flicked the Remembrall up into the air… and it never came back down. It vanished completely. Teddy’s jaw dropped while the other students applauded. 

"How did you do that?" he asked, his voice much louder than he intended, and the applause stopped. The group parted between the girl and the sixth year, and her eyes dropped to her shoes, her long blonde hair falling in a curtain over her eyes. 

"Ummm… my parents taught me." 

"…Aren’t you Muggleborn? How did they teach you a proper Vanishing spell, and to do it without speaking and without a wand? Just… how?" Desdemona simply shrugged. Teddy’s hair turned bright red for a moment (as happened when he was flustered) and he turned away, shaking his head. Desdemona bowed to her audience’s thunderous applause, careful not to let the Remembrall fall from the hidden pocket in her sleeve. Never, ever reveal the secret, never perform the exact same trick for the same audience, and always leave the audience wanting more, the Holy Trinity of stage magic. Her parents, the Traveling Cartwrights, would be so proud!


	3. Unless (Monroe/Rosalee)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on this OTP Prompt: Imagine Person A of your OTP reading their child/ren a children’s book, possibly one that they are unfamiliar with or didn’t remember clearly from their childhood. During the course of the reading, they realize that the message of said book is actually really deep, and once they put the kid/s to bed, they just need to curl up with their significant other/s and just think about it.

Monroe and Rosalee were getting Sophia ready for bed when Rosalee suggested that Monroe read the little girl one of her new books from Auntie Trubel. Monroe looked at the brightly colored hardback, confused.  
"What the hell is a  _Lorax_?” he asked as he hoisted his two year old daughter into her bed. Rosalee stared at him for a moment.  
"You’re kidding, right?" Monroe looked back blankly. "You’ve never read it?" Monroe shrugged.  
"Remember, my parents were much more traditional… but Dr. Seuss, he did  _The_ _Grinch_ , right?” Rosalee nodded.  
"Yes. And  _Yertle the Turtle_ , and  _Cat in the Hat_ , and the  _Sneetches_  with stars upon thars…” Monroe looked lost. “Seriously?”  
"I only know  _The_ _Grinch_  from television…”   
"If you’re joking right now, stop. It’s not funny!"  
"Why is this so important?"   
"Daddy, stowwy?" Sophia asked, her hazel eyes shining up into his. Rosalee sighed.  
"Read her the book, then come talk to me, okay? Night, baby girl." She kissed her daughter gently before leaving.  
"Okay, Pup,  _The Lorax_  by Dr. Seuss…” Sophia cuddled close to her father. “At the far edge of town, where the grickle-grass grows…”  _What the hell?_  He thought to himself,  _what is all this nonsense?_  He remembered all the nonsense words in  _The Grinch_ , and decided to ignore it. However, as he read, Monroe found himself strangely engrossed in the story. There were tears in the corners of his eyes as he read the last few pages.   
"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not." Monroe looked down to see Sophia’s reaction, only to find her fast asleep. Monroe felt some of the tears escape as he looked at his little miracle, his precious little princess. All of the other Wesen who thought she was an abomination because her parents dared to love outside their species… her parents, who cared about love more than upholding tradition… her godfather, Nick, who cared more about doing what was right than upholding tradition… Juliette and Hank, who cared more about loyalty and friendship than fear of the unknown… And all of the minds that they’d changed together, especially his parents’… They were all working to make this little girl’s life better, whether they knew it or not. Because they care. They care a whole awful lot. Monroe kissed his daughter’s temple, tucked her in, gave her another kiss for good measure, and went to find his wife. She was folding laundry in their room, and he embraced her without a word.   
"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not," she whispered, and Monroe finally broke down in her arms. "I know, honey…" she purred as they sat on the bed together. She ran her fingers comfortingly through his hair. Eventually, Monroe wiped his eyes on his sleeve and sat up a little straighter, arms still tight around his wife. He cleared his throat.  
"So, uh, that book is… like… really deep." She nodded, running her fingers gently back and forth on his arm.   
"A lot of his books are like that. The subtext doesn’t register when you’re a kid, but when you go back… like  _The Sneetches_  is all about racism and classism…  _Green Eggs and Ham_  is about fear of the unknown… umm,  _The Butter Battle Book_  is basically a nuclear arms race brought on by a disagreement over which side of the toast to butter…”  
"Seriously? Huh… I guess I should look into more of his work." He shrugged his shoulders, and she smiled.  
"Yeah. You should. But in the meantime," she cupped his face in her hands, "I care an awful lot, and so do you. And so do our families and our friends. And we will make this world better for her." She rubbed his nose with hers before giving him another gentle kiss. "How did Sophia take it?"  
"No idea. She fell asleep." Rosalee nodded.  
"Well, I’m sure we’ll read it plenty more times before we’re done with her." Monroe smiled.  
"I’m sure we will."


	4. Storm (Monroe/Rosalee)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on this OTP Prompt: Imagine your OTP sleeping together, with their baby/ies between them.

Monroe heard the crash of thunder before something pushed his shoulder and shook him. When he didn’t respond, he felt a small hand patting his face.

"Daddy?" came a small, frightened voice, which finally drew him back to reality. His oldest daughter, Sophia, was talking to him. He opened an eye, and found his three children, five year old Sophia and two year old twins Keith and Kelly, huddled together next to the bed. Keith and Kelly were clinging to their older sister as another flash of lightning caused them all to flinch together; a few seconds later, the thunder followed, causing Kelly to squeak in terror. They were all visibly trembling. 

"What are you three doing?" he mumbled, glancing over his shoulder at his wife. Rosalee was fast asleep, dead to the world. 

"Daddy, we’re scared," Sophia said quietly, and the twins nodded in agreement. Another bright flash and Keith flung himself at his father. 

"So you guys want to stay in here with us?" Another deep rumble of thunder, and Kelly and Sophia were climbing on the bed, clinging to their father’s legs. 

"Can we, please?" Monroe sighed as he looked into their faces. How could he say no?

"Okay, but don’t wake Mommy, alright?" He picked Keith up and swung him over in between his body and Rosalee’s. Rosalee turned over to face them, and her arms found Kelly, who happily allowed herself to be pulled to her mother’s chest. Keith likewise cuddled with his father while Sophia found a spot wedged between her parents’ legs. Monroe’s eyes were heavy, but he didn’t allow himself to fall asleep until he was sure his Pup and two Kits were asleep. He should probably teach them sometime soon that storms weren’t that scary, but tonight, at least, he could protect them. He smiled slightly as he, too, drifted back to sleep. 


	5. Notes (Monroe/Rosalee, High School AU)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on this OTP Prompt: Imagine your OTP are back in high school. Person A borrows Person B’s notebook for notes, and discovers their name written all over at the back of Person B’s notebook (complete with hearts). How will Person A react?

Rosalee's heart flutters in her chest as she makes her way to her first period Pre-AP Chemistry class; today's the day! She's going to do it! She's going to ask Monroe out! If she doesn't pass out first... No, she has to do this... But he's her best friend... What if Juliette's wrong and he doesn't like her like that? Ugh, why was this so hard? 

Rosalee enters the classroom and finds Monroe's seat empty. That's odd, he's always early. Maybe he's running late today? Her phone buzzes in her pocket. A text from him.

_Hey, I'm home sick. Take notes for me today? Please? I'll owe you one!_

Rosalee feels her smile fade. Shit. All that psyching herself up... 

_Okay! Feel better <3 _

She hits send and immediately feels stupid for putting the heart. Ugh, damn it... But the bell rings, and she puts her phone away. The teacher begins to lecture, and Rosalee doodles hearts with Monroe's name in the margins of her notebook; however the lecture soon turns to talk of moles and conversions of that sort, and Rosalee is frantically scribbling notes and equations; she hopes Monroe will be able to read them. 

The bell finally rings, and she makes her way to her French class. They are reading  _Le Petit Prince_ still. Rosalee actually really likes the story... Especially the Renard, the fox desiring to be tamed. 

After French, Rosalee has P.E. with Juliette. Juliette comes bouncing into the locker room with a smile.

"Did you do it? What did he say?" Rosalee sighs sadly and shakes her head; Juliette's face falls.

"Oh no! He said no?!? Nick swore to me he's in love with you..."

"No, not that... He's not here today. He's home sick. He texted me asking me to take notes in Chem and English... He said he'd owe me one..." Juliette laughed.

"Maybe tell him he owes you dinner and a movie!" 

"Let's GO, ladies!" their gym teacher yells into the locker room. "These basketballs aren't going to dribble themselves!" 

After gym, Rosalee and Juliette have lunch; they meet up with Juliette's boyfriend Nick and their other friend Hank. 

"So Jules tells me you were planning on asking Monroe out today," Nick says casually as he opens up his milk carton; he and Hank both laugh as Rosalee's cheeks turn bright red. "Don't worry, he'll say yes. He's been in love with you since you met. He just doesn't have the balls to tell you."

"You're sure? You're not just saying that to get me to embarrass myself?" Hank chuckles.

"If we wanted to embarrass you, we'd stand up on the table right now and shout it so the whole lunchroom would know!" He faked standing up and Rosalee grabbed his arm. 

"Don't you dare!" Hank, Nick, and Juliette laughed. 

"It's not like it's a surprise; Half the school knows he's in love with you..."

"You keep saying that. What if you're wrong?" Hank and Nick give each other a look, and Nick sighs. 

"Look, Rosalee, I know it isn't much, but can you just trust us? He's into you, okay?" The bell rings, and Rosalee makes her way to their Pre-AP English class. They're reading  _The Great Gatsby_ , but Monroe's already read it. Of course he has, the nerd. But damn if he isn't a cute one... Rosalee's mind wanders, imagining herself dressed as a flapper and Monroe looking very sexy in a dark suit driving a yellow car... God, Daisy totally doesn't deserve Gatsby... 

Finally the bell rings to end the school day. Rosalee makes sure she rendezvous with Sean to get Monroe's German homework before catching the bus home. Monroe thankfully lives in her development, so they hang out often... Rosalee pulls out her notebook before she gets off the bus; since they have block scheduling, they won't have these classes again until Thursday. Maybe Monroe will be able to figure out the mole thing for Chem... 

"Hello, Rosalee!" Monroe's mother, Alice, opens the door. 

"Hi! I have Monroe's notes and homework!" The older woman smiled kindly before taking the proffered notebooks. 

"Thank you, honey. He's taking a nap right now, but I'm sure he'll be pleased. He especially wanted your Chemistry notes..."

"We started mole conversion today, so there's a lot of information..." Alice nodded.

"I remember moles... Anyway, hopefully he'll rejoin the land of the living tomorrow. Have a good night, honey."

"Goodnight!" 

A few hours later, Rosalee's phone rang. Monroe. 

"Hi! How are you feeling?" 

"Like hell," came a raspy reply. Rosalee pouted to hear him sound so bad.

"Aww... I'm sorry... Did you need me to explain the moles?" 

"No, I actually have a question about the doodles in the margins... Did you draw those?"

"What doodles...?" Realization hit her like an ocean wave during a squall. Her doodled hearts with his name... Shit.

"Rosalee?" His voice cracked and he sounded panicked. "Rosalee, did you draw those hearts with my name?" It was no use to lie.

"Yes! Yes, I did!" Rosalee said. There was silence on the other end for a moment. When he started speaking again, he sounded terrified.

"This isn't a joke, is it? Did Nick and Hank put you up to this? If this is some sort of prank, you need to tell me right now before I do something incredibly stupid..."

"No, it isn't a joke... I... I'm... I was going to ask you out on a date today. Juliette, Nick, and Hank swear you like me back..." More silence on the line; Rosalee worried for a moment he had hung up. 

"So you do like me?" came the question, so quiet Rosalee almost didn't hear it. "They were telling me you liked me back, too..." 

"I do. I like you a lot. I want to date you." A huge sigh of relief came from Monroe's end.

"Okay. When I feel better, I'm taking you out on a date... and Rosalee?"

"Yeah?"  
"Thanks for the notes."

"You're welcome. Please feel better."

"Will do."


	6. Hickey (Monroe/Rosalee)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on a fanfic ask meme. Prompt was "Last time I ask you for a favor!"

For BeNiceOrIllPutYouInMyNovel

* * *

Rosalee probably should have known better. 

"Hey, honey?" she says quietly as she plops down next to him on the couch. "Can you do me a favor and rub my shoulders?" Monroe puts his book down and turns toward his wife. She may not realize it yet, but her scent is different; she’s coming into season. She sighs happily as large, warm hands knead the tense muscles. Monroe starts kissing the back of her neck, letting his mate’s delicious scent fill his senses, and she outright purrs. Soon, though, his hands leave her shoulders and travel to the buttons of her blouse; his kisses on her neck have turned to licks and nips as they move to under her ear. She moans quietly as he concentrates his attention there as his hands find her breasts. Finally, Rosalee decides she’s had quite enough of this and they should move to the bedroom; she suddenly stands, offering him a hand. He is in a bit of a daze, but he smirks as they climb the stairs together. As they pass the large mirror outside their door, it catches Rosalee’s eye: the skin of her neck under her ear is turning purple. 

"Holy shit, Monroe! You gave me a hickey!" She looks up at her husband, who has the smug grin of the cat who ate the canary.

"You’re coming into season. I had to stake my claim… Hey!" He laughs as she slaps his shoulder before turning back to the mirror.

"Ugh, all I wanted was a shoulder rub… Last time I ask you for a favor!" Monroe whines, pouts, and makes his big puppy dog eyes, and Rosalee sighs. "Okay, we can pick up where we left off, but NO MORE HICKEYS…" she accentuates the last part with taps to his nose before grabbing his collar and bringing his nose level to hers. "…On parts that everyone can see!" She releases her grip and darts into the bedroom, her husband on her heels. 


	7. This is My Duck Story (Monroe/Rosalee, with Hank Friendship)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on this OTP Prompt: Prompt: Imagine that Person C likes to write duck AUs about Persons A and B (how they feel about that is up to you).

"Remind me again how you ended up saddled with the task of fixing Hank’s laptop?" 

"I’ll give you three guesses and the first two don’t count," Monroe muttered as he examined the hardware. Rosalee rolled her eyes. Just because he can fix clocks, their friends seem to think he can fix  _anything_ , from laptops to cars. That one really hurt, actually, because cars were  _her_  thing. Monroe poked around a bit before closing up the laptop and flipping it over. He pressed the power button, and let out a sigh of relief when the machine booted up. 

"All right! Good job!" The couple high fived and the computer went straight to Hank’s desktop.

"No lock screen?" Monroe asked, concerned. Rosalee agreed, that seemed very unlike Hank. However, they both cringed to see his desktop was littered with icons and shortcuts and random internet search bars.  

"Ugh! No wonder it won’t work! Look at this mess!" Rosalee said with a slight degree of disgust; she and Monroe were both very protective of their computers, and neither could believe Hank would take such poor care of his technology. 

"Whelp, I guess we need to clean this up, run a virus scan or twelve, and defrag the…" he stopped and squinted at the screen. "Honey, does that Word Doc say what I think it says?" Rosalee leaned in close to him, 

"No, it’s totally labelled ‘Monroe Rosalee’…" They stared at each other for a moment. 

"Should we open it? I mean, I feel like we’re violating his privacy…"

"Why does he have a document named after us in the first place?" She right-clicked the file. "And it was modified two days ago… created… over a year ago? Holy crap…"

"We probably shouldn’t… he’ll know we accessed it… maybe if we put it on a jump drive and…"

"NO. We are NOT letting anything from his computer near ours! He probably has so many viruses and… ugh… but I really need to see what this is…" Before Monroe can protest, she opens the file, and a thick wall of text appears. It’s a story… about them. Rosalee clicks a few things to see the stats: There are almost 100 pages, almost 50,000 words. Rosalee backs away and starts shaking her head. Monroe starts scrolling, his brow furrowed. 

"Well, if it makes you feel better, it portrays us both very positively… we seem very much in love… I know he’s supportive of our relationship, I just didn’t realize he was…" he cocks his head. "Am I reading this right?"

"I have no idea, honey, I wasn’t paying attention."

"I think…" he highlights a section and turns the screen to her. "Well, read this and tell me if you come to the same conclusion." Rosalee looks at the highlighted text. 

  
_'Monroe followed Rosalee down to the river, and gracefully slid into the water side by side. Monroe's bright yellow eyes followed his graceful mate as she dove for food, her tail feathers catching the evening sun. The only thing more beautiful than her diving was seeing her in flight…'_ Rosalee’s jaw fell open. 

"Are we… geese?" 

"Ummm, actually I think we’re ducks. Ring-necks by his description…" They look at each other for a moment before they both start laughing. "Is it bad I kind of want to read all of this? Just to see where he goes with it?"

"No, I want to see, too. It’ll give us something to do while we’re waiting for all the scans… but why ducks?" Monroe shrugs.

"No idea. Maybe if we read more, it’ll tell us…" 

"Well, start a couple of scans first… don’t forget why we’re here." 

The next day, Monroe delivers Hank’s laptop back to his house. Hank thanks him profusely, stating that he owes them one. Monroe nods as he give a short rundown of all the things they did to the machine.

"Don’t use Internet Explorer anymore, it’s bad for you. We installed Chrome for you. Also, you might want to set up a lock screen and password. We also cleaned up your desktop and created a sort of filing system for your documents. It should work much better now… Any questions?"

"No, but when I learn whatever language you just spoke in, I’ll let you know. Thanks again!" Monroe waved goodbye and Hank set his computer down. Thank goodness they were able to work their magic. Hank boots up his computer and is able to see the background image for the first time pretty much since he bought the thing; however, he feels the blood drain from his face when he sees that the new image is a pair of ring-necked ducks, one of them diving, and a thought bubble over the other reading "DAYUM, GURL!" Shit, how could he forget to rename his duck story? He opens the document (after he finds it with the new filing system) and finds a comment in the margins.

“ _Hank, this story is a little weird but really cute; we’re actually rather flattered. You might want to consider writing a children’s book!”_  



	8. Fish Tale (Monroe/Rosalee, Merperson AU)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rosalee is rescued from a shipwreck by a kind merman.

Rosalee wakes with a coughing fit. She is soaking wet, and a liter of water seems to be trying to push its way out of her lungs. A strong hand rubs her back as she expels the water. When she finally regains her breath, she turns to see to whom the hand is attached. A shirtless man with a mop of dark curls, hazel eyes, and a wide smile surrounded by a full beard is next to her in the low tide. She allows herself to glance beyond his neck; he has sun-bronzed skin, well-defined muscles, a green tail… Wait, a tail? Rosalee scrambles into a sitting position, and her suspicion is confirmed; a merman! His smile falls, and he looks frightened. She realizes he is probably more afraid of her than she is of him.  
“Are you one of the merfolk?” she asks quietly. Stupid question, but she needs to know he understands her. He nods, demonstrating his fin. “What is your name?” she asks. He leaps back into the water; no, she hadn’t meant to frighten him! He resurfaces, beckoning her; he cups some water in his hands and then holds the water over his ears. Rosalee thinks she understands, so she takes a deep breath and slides into the water. She opens her eyes and he begins to speak in the most beautiful voice Rosalee has ever heard.  
“Hello! My name is Monroe! You are quite lovely for a land-dweller! You must be curious as to how we came to meet… What is the last thing you remember?” He took her hand and they surface together.   
“Ship was sinking… My family… we were sailing to the New World… Were there other survivors?” Monroe mimics taking a deep breath and goes back underwater, clearly expecting her to do the same.   
“My lady, the sharks got many of those on board before we could intervene. I had to fight one that tried to get you.” He shows her his forearm, which has fresh scratch marks on it. “I can find out if there were other survivors,  but I had to get you to shore…” They breach the surface again.   
“Thank you. Thank you for saving me.” Rosalee smiles at the merman. “My name is Rosalee.” Monroe takes her hand and kisses it. He makes a strange squealing noise before slapping a hand over his mouth and going under again.   
“I am so sorry! I meant to say, ‘Enchanted.’ It is nice to meet you, Miss Rosalee… But I feel you probably are tired and hungry… I can find if there are any survivors…” Rosalee grabs his arm and shakes her head. They surface again.  
“No! Please don’t leave me! I don’t know where I am!” Back underwater.   
“You are on the Isle of Man. Your ship didn’t get very far, I’m afraid. But they do speak English…” They come up for air, and he helps her back ashore. Rosalee takes his hand and with her other she touches his face. He closes his eyes, relishing her touch.   
“Promise you’ll come back for me?” Rosalee asks quietly, tears in her eyes. He nods. He needs to check to see if there are other survivors, but he can’t abandon her alone in a strange place… She’s been through enough already. He kisses her hand and writes _Tomorrow, noon, here_ in the sand. She nods.   
“Thank you.”   _You’ll be fine_. He kisses her hand again before he dives back into the water, leaving her alone on the shore. 


	9. The Question Every Parent Dreads (Monroe/Rosalee with Drew/Hank)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on this OTP Prompt: Imagine your OTP has a child, who then innocently ask them the magic question of “How are babies made?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Simplified explanations of gender/sexual identity concepts and adoption that might make some readers uncomfortable.

It's a bright Tuesday afternoon, and Monroe finally got all three kids down for a nap. Rosalee was at work, so he could finally take a look at that watch Johann sent over. He put on his magnifiers and kneeled at his workbench. 

He opened up the back and started looking over the mechanisms; it was a truly beautiful watch, and he was going to get it to work again. He let himself get lost in the gears and the mechanisms, and he figured out what the problem was. He took off his magnifiers and stood; he's going to need to put in a call to one of his associates. As he stood, though, he heard a small voice by his elbow. 

"Daddy?" Monroe nearly jumped out if his skin to find four year old Sophia had been standing next to him, watching, quietly waiting for her opportunity to catch him in a moment where he wasn't concentrating; she was learning patience, and it was probably going to give him a heart attack at some point. He clutched his chest for a moment before smiling at her as if she hadn't just scared the living daylights out of him. 

"Oh, hey, honey... What's the matter? Can't sleep?" She shook her head, her dark curls sweeping her shoulders. 

"No, I was thinking..." 

"Oh, that's good. Thinking is good. What were you thinking about?"

"The babies." The twins, Keith and Kelly, were going on 7 months old, and Sophia found her siblings fascinating.

"Oh, really? What about them?"

"How did the babies get inside Mommy?" Monroe felt all the blood drain from his face. Crap. They had actually been wondering when she would ask that dreaded question... when Rosalee's second pregnancy was confirmed, both parents had agreed to tell their daughter the truth... Monroe had secretly been hoping that he would dodge the bullet and Sophia would ask her mother instead, but he clearly wasn't that lucky. He was brought out of his frantic inner monologue when he noticed Sophia was giving him a strange look.

"You  _do_  know, don't you?" 

"Of course I do! I'm their father! It's not like they grew..." Monroe stopped, struck by sudden inspiration. His unfinished statement, about the twins growing in a garden, had led him to what might actually be a halfway decent metaphor that she might understand. He took her hand and led her out onto the porch, where they had a small army of flowerpots growing herbs. Rosalee thought it would be a good idea to start Sophia with some simple chores, and the little girl loved watering the plants. She was getting to know what each one smelled and tasted like, and how Daddy used them in his cooking. All of their herbs had been grown from seedlings except one, and that was the one he needed. 

"Okay, Pup, what is this?" He held up a small pot with a feathery green herb growing.

"Dill!" He smiles widely at her excitement. 

"Very good! Do you remember how we grew the dill?"

"We put a seed in the dirt, and then we had to water it and let it get sun." Monroe nodded.

"Well, getting a baby is very similar. Mommy has a special organ inside her that's like a flower pot. It's called a u..." Crap, he didn't want to get into technical terms. He and Rosalee agreed to try to explain it in such a way that they wouldn't have to explain their four year old saying things like "semen" and "ovary". They could always clarify later... Crap, crap, crap.

"It's called a U? Like the letter?" And his daughter was already too sharp to try to backpedal now. He took another breath. 

"Umm, Uterus. It's called a uterus. With me so far?" Sophia nods intently. "Okay, so once a month, Mommy releases a seed into her uterus... well, it's called an egg..."

"Like the kind we have for breakfast?" the little girl asked brightly. 

"Umm.. yes. But smaller. A lot smaller. Anyway, umm, if Mommy and Daddy give each other.. a special kind of hug while the egg is in the uterus, it's like... umm... watering it. So if the water meets the seed in the flower pot, a plant will grow, and if the egg gets... watered... in the uterus, a baby will grow... Does that make sense?" 

"Okay... And how did Mommy get two babies?" 

"She released two eggs. It happens sometimes." Sophia nodded as Monroe set the pot down. 

"And that's how you got me, too?" The much larger Blutbad scooped up his tiny daughter, making his way back inside. 

"That's right, Baby."

"Did it take a lot of special hugs to get me?" Monroe chuckled a little, remembering Rosalee's mounting panic with each negative pregnancy test, and just doing his best to keep up with her desperate measures; it was only after Rosalee had all but given up and their mating 'schedule' relaxed considerably that she finally conceived. 

"It did. We wanted you so, so badly..." 

"If you didn't want me, would you have given me to Uncle Hank and Uncle Drew? Because that's how they got Danao." Monroe blinked before it registered. Hank and Drew had adopted a Filipina girl a few years ago, and she sometimes babysat for Monroe and Rosalee when Trubel was busy. 

"Danao is adopted, yes... Did she tell you that?" Sophia nodded.

"She said her Mommy didn't want her, so she left her in a box and she had to wait until somebody wanted her. And Uncle Hank and Uncle Drew wanted her because neither of them can be a Mommy."

"Err... right. Because they're both boys." 

"So only girls have a uterus?" Oh boy, how was he going to deal with this? 

"Umm... Okay, I need you to try to understand something... You know how Keith and Kelly look different when we change their diapers?" She nodded.

"Okay... Which twin do you look like?"

"Kelly, 'cause she's a girl. Mommy explained that to me. She said you look like Keith, but bigger. Actually, she said a lot bigger." Wow, okay, thanks, Rosalee. 

"Okay, well, so most people are born as one or the other; most girls are born with a uterus. However, sometimes people are born in the wrong body, and they decide to have operations to turn their body into the right one." Sophia was quiet for an uncomfortable long moment.

"So... I could feel like I'm not supposed to be a girl and go to the hospital and come back a boy?" Oh boy, this isn't good... dear god, don't let him screw this up...

"It's a little more complicated than that... It's a process. But if you do decide that in the future, Mommy and Daddy will both love you. And if you decide you like being a girl, that's fine, you can stay a girl."

"If I decide I want to be a boy, I can still like boys, right? Like Uncle Hank likes Uncle Drew?"

"Umm, sure. You can like whomever you want as long as they respect you and love you and don't try to change you. And if you stay a girl and find you like girls and want to give them your special hugs, we'll still love you... But if you like boys, no special hugs with them until you're eighteen."

"So I don't end up growing a baby?"

"So you don't end up growing a baby unless you want one and can take care of one. Or you might like both boys and girls and want to give them all special hugs... or you might never want to give anyone a special hug at all. It's all up to you, Baby, and Mommy and Daddy will love you so much no matter what. Okay?" She nodded.

"So I can like anyone I want as long as they like me back?"

"And they are nice to you and care about you a lot."

"So I can love Bruce Banner AND Storm?" Monroe chuckled. Auntie Trubel had determined that Sophia was old enough for a solid grounding in Marvel superheroes; the little girl liked Hulk best because he reminded her a lot of her Daddy, and she liked Storm because she thought flying and controlling the weather were the best superpowers  ever. 

"Umm, sure, but if they smash you, you come tell me and Mommy and we'll smash them right back, okay?" Sophia yawned widely as she nodded her head. "Wanna try to nap for a bit?" She nodded again. Monroe once more gathered her up in his arms and carried her up to her room. 

"I'm glad you and Mommy grew us." 

"I'm glad too, Pumpkin. More than you'll ever know."


	10. "Wrestling" (Monroe/Rosalee)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on this OTP Prompt: Your OTP are the parents of a young child. One night, your OTP are having sex when they hear their child asking “What are you doing?” Your OTP is understandably flustered, so Person A says “Wrestling!” The child nods in understanding for a moment before asking “Who’s winning?” How the scenario plays out from there is up to you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: Non-graphic(ish?) description of sex

"Oh, yeah, baby, yeah!" Rosalee moaned as her husband Monroe wrapped his arms around her back. She ran her fingers through his hair as she leaned down to kiss him forcefully. He reciprocated the kiss with a slight growl as he thrust harder. It was nice to have some alone time without...

"Whatcha doing?" came a small voice from the doorway. Both heads snapped up as Rosalee gathered the sheet covering her closer around her shoulders. Their two year old daughter Sophia stood at the door, clutching a stuffed wolf and rubbing her eyes. She had escaped from her crib. Again. Rosalee was thankful the chill of the night had inspired them to seek warmth under the covers so the little girl couldn't see anything.

"Ummm... We're wrestling," Monroe offered lamely. "Why don't you go back to bed?" 

"Who winning?" Monroe and Rosalee looked at each other for a moment.

"Umm, I am," Rosalee said, earning her a well-placed thrust from her husband, which caused her to gasp. "But your Daddy's putting up an awful good fight..." 

"You let her win?" Sophia asked. He chuckled a little.

"I try to, because if Mommy's happy, Daddy's happy. And if we're happy, little Pup will be happy, okay?" The little girl seemed to take this as good enough reasoning and nodded. 

"Okay... you make Mommy happy. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, honey!" Rosalee called. They listened for the sound of her door closing before Rosalee collapsed onto her husband's chest, her hands covering her face. "Oh my God... There's a parenting first for you..." Monroe snorted, and soon the two of them were giggling in the darkness. Monroe slowly started to move his hips again. Rosalee purred in the back of her throat but she looked down at him questioningly.

"You heard her, I have to make you happy!" Rosalee smiled, leaning down close.

"You always do," she whispered before capturing his lips in a kiss. 


	11. Blankets (Science Bros BroTP- MCU)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce and Tony bonding a bit in Avengers Tower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Requested by Sarah., some Science Bros BroTP based in large part on our mutual desire to wrap Bruce Banner in a blanket and cuddle him mercilessly.

Tony Stark wandered into the Tower lab around 2:30 in the morning. While it was not unusual for Tony to be up at this time, JARVIS had apologetically informed him that Doctor Banner was still working in the lab, past his usual bedtime. Tony had a big, fluffy blanket around his shoulders as he walked; the lab was usually kept pretty chilly at night to keep the many delicate mechanisms contained within from overheating while unsupervised. Tony walked up behind Bruce, whose arms were tightly clasped around his chest. He was shivering slightly, staring at the screen in front of him. He started when he realized Tony was behind him.

"What’s up, Doc?" Tony said with a wry smile. Bruce took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes. 

"Nothing… just…" Tony’s eyes flickered up to the screen. 

"Just looking at Steve’s glamour shots?" Bruce sighed. "Still stuck on replicating the Super Soldier Serum?" Bruce lifted his palms and shrugged. Then he shivered violently. Tony took the blanket off his shoulders and dropped it over the Doctor’s head. Bruce wrapped the blanket around himself, making a red and gold cocoon of fluff. He stroked the fleece as if he were petting an animal.

"Wow. This is a nice blanket… it’s so soft…" Tony smiled slightly. 

"Of course it is. Who the hell do you think you’re talking to?" He clapped Bruce on the back. "Look, you’ll get there, but probably not tonight. Why don’t you go get some sleep?" 

"Just a little longer, I think. Then I’ll go to bed." Tony shrugged, and walked out of the lab. 

Tony found Bruce curled up in a blanket burrito on the desk in the morning, just where he’d left him. He offered the Doctor some coffee, which he accepted before sheepishly handing back the blanket.

"Thanks again…. I think I’m going to go shower…" Tony nodded.

Later that day, a package arrived at the Tower for one Doctor Bruce Banner: a King-sized fluffy green blanket with a note that read ‘Don’t work so hard; you’ll stress yourself out.’


	12. Buckets of Rain, Buckets of Tears (Monroe/Rosalee, Newscaster AU)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on this OTP Prompt: Your OTP work together for a local news station doing the morning newscast. Person A (the more conventionally attractive one) is one of the main anchors while Person B does the weather and is the one that has to go through all the silly gimmicks for the station (being sent to weird events, having to eat strange things on camera, etc.) but they both love their jobs and fall in love with each other.
> 
> One day there’s some really bad weather (including flooding) and Person B is sent out into it. About halfway through the live newscast, the station loses contact with Person B and their team. Person A fears the worst, but has to keep cool for the camera (maybe they allow themselves to freak out during commercials). At the end of the show, Person B comes bursting into the studio, soaking wet and a little worse for wear; Person A doesn’t care that they’re in the middle of a story as they rush over to their lover. Person B then drops to their knee and proposes on live television.

Rosalee Calvert checked her microphone, watching the clock. It was just a few minutes until 5 am, and a terrible storm was raging outside. Rosalee and her boyfriend, Monroe, had a hell of a time driving into work together this morning as some of the roads near their apartment were flooded already. They got to the studio on time, Rosalee going straight into hair and makeup with Sarah and Sammy, Monroe to rendezvous with his team: Hank Griffin, the cameraman, and Drew Wu, the sound guy and general troubleshooter. Rosalee had been hoping that with the weather as it was, they'd keep Monroe in the studio and do the green-screen; when she came out of hair and make-up, she found that wouldn't be the case: he, Hank, and Drew had already left. Rosalee made a mental note to stock up on more tea so he wouldn't get sick; Monroe may be "just" the weatherman, but he's definitely a fan favorite. He was the guy sent out on location, interacting with the locals, and often made to do some truly embarrassing things, such as the time he had to eat a chocolate-covered grasshopper on air. Or the time he was on the receiving end of a demonstration by a Taekwondo black belt. Or when he had to sit in the dunk tank at a local festival during a live on-site broadcast. But he loved his job, and it showed. When Rosalee was hired three years ago, he was the first person who treated her as more than the pretty bobble-head reading a Teleprompter; he complimented her pronunciation of a very complicated Arabic name, and they became fast friends. Rosalee found him sweet, smart, and incredibly genuine, and soon found herself falling in love. Nick Burkhardt, her co-anchor and Monroe's best friend, insisted Monroe was in love with her, too, but she didn't believe it until the weatherman came back from a live broadcast at a local bakery bearing a giant cookie he had decorated with the words 'Rosalee, will you go out with me?' Rosalee's answer was to throw her arms around his neck happily. They found themselves kissing, but to this day each insisted the other started it. They had just moved in together a few months ago and have been talking seriously about getting married... Rosalee wished she could have given him one more kiss and said a quick prayer for his safety and that of his crew. She would have to talk to Sean about sending people out into freak hurricanes... Sean Renard was their producer, making sure everything went the way it should. Nick slid into his seat next to her and they smiled at each other. 

"Have any trouble getting in today?" he asked. Rosalee sighed.

"It's a damn mess out there. Why on earth would Sean send..." Nick shook his head.

"Didn't come from Sean. He wanted to keep them, Drew especially, in studio in case the power goes out- and it might- but he got orders from much higher up to send them out for storm footage. You know Ian, he don't give a shit. He just wants his story." Rosalee rolled her eyes. Ian Harmon owned the station, and if you valued your job, his word was the Word of God. Ian had flirted incessantly with Rosalee when she was first hired, but she quietly rejected his advances; and ever since she and Monroe moved in together (noted by the matching addresses on their paychecks), Ian had been arranging for stranger and stranger stunts and remote locations for the weatherman, almost as if he were trying to embarrass Rosalee into breaking up with him; but, truth be told, Monroe's personality, humor, and willingness to try new things shone through even brighter, and Rosalee found her falling deeper and deeper in love with every cat fashion show attended and every chili pepper eaten. 

She sighed, watching Juliette, the director, scurry around with her assistant Teresa close behind. Sean stepped out of the booth and addressed the set.

"Okay, guys, just letting you know that our guest, that violin prodigy kid, he isn't coming. His flight was cancelled because of the storm, so we'll have extra time. I'll need some filler at the end of the show, okay? Rosalee, Nick, don't worry, we'll get you something... Alright people, we've got a show to do! 5 minutes!"

"Five minutes, thank you!" Juliette and Teresa call back. Juliette came up to the desk and ruffles Nick's hair with a smile. 

"Glad you guys made it in," she murmured, adjusting Rosalee's lopsided mic. "That storm is getting nasty..."

"And yet they sent Hank, Drew, and Monroe into it..." Rosalee muttered. Juliette smiled sadly.

"They'll be alright. I don't think Ian would send them anywhere unsafe... But the show must go on! Okay, everybody ready?" A series of "ready"s answered, and she moved to stand by Bud, the cameraman. "And we're live in five, four..." She mouthed the last three numbers before the theme music played. Rosalee smiled as Nick began to speak.

"Good morning, I'm Nick Burkhardt..."

"And I'm Rosalee Calvert. Our top story this morning, Hurricane Glinda is battering the coast, causing significant flooding. Our intrepid weather team is braving the storm to bring you the story!" There was a cut to a black screen. 

"They aren't ready yet, keep going," Juliette's voice came into Rosalee's ear. Nick picked up the dropped lead.

"Okay, it looks like we aren't getting a signal yet, but we'll check back in with them in a bit! Overnight, we received a report that the House of Representatives..." Nick and Rosalee traded reading their news stories and then it was time for a commercial break. Juliette came up to the desk.

"Okay, guys, Drew got our connection fixed, so when we come back, we're throwing it back out to Monroe, okay?" Nick and Rosalee nodded. The music came back on, and Juliette gave them their lead-in.

"Welcome back!" Nick began again cheerfully. "For those of you just joining us, our top story is Hurricane Glinda. For more, we're going to turn it over to our weatherman-about-town, Monroe." The video feed jumped and focused. Rosalee felt the blood drain from her face when she realized where they were.  Oh shit, they're out on the fishing pier, no railings. Monroe was trying to keep his hood on, yelling over the gale winds as the choppy water splashed up behind them. That couldn't possibly be safe... 

"Good morning, Nick, Rosalee! We're out here on the pier, and as you can see, it's a WICKED squall this morning! There's a lot of flooding, and as you can see behind me, the water is high and really rough! It looks like the worst of it will probably be over by..." Rosalee saw the wave just before it hit him. 

"Look out!" she shrieked before frothy water hit the camera. The feed cut out again, leaving Rosalee and Nick staring at a blank screen. Rosalee's hand was clapped over her mouth, and her shoulders began to shake. 

"We'll be right back," she heard Nick say, throwing to commercial. When the cameras cut, Nick reached over and puts a light hand on Rosalee's shoulder. She was still staring at the screen. 

"You gonna be okay?" he asked. Suddenly they're surrounded by people. Juliette gave Rosalee's other shoulder a squeeze. Sean was on his phone. He dialed Monroe, then Hank, then Drew. None answered, and he shook his head.

"Okay, guys, we'll keep trying to get them but for now we have a show to do." He turned to Rosalee. "Can you keep going?" Rosalee nodded slightly, plastering a sad smile on her face. Sean nodded. "Okay. If you need a break, let us know. We'll keep trying to get hold of them." Rosalee realized that Nick was rubbing her back gently. She looked over at him; his expression was neutral, but his eyes betrayed his deep concern.  He scooted over and gave her a quick hug. 

"It'll be alright," he whispered, and Rosalee wondered if he's telling her or himself. 

"Alright, everybody, ninety seconds!" Juliette called; everyone backed away from the desk, and the cameras began to roll again. Rosalee took a deep breath in, cracked her neck, and wiped her eyes. He's fine. He's fine... He has to be fine. It was almost 6 am. 

Rosalee's fake smile and false cheeriness got tiring very quickly, and after another hour with no word, she was on the verge of tears. At the next commercial, Rosalee put her face down on the desk. Juliette led her into the bathroom to wash her face. Rosalee wanted desperately to cry. What if... Her stomach turned at the thought, and her breakfast made a reappearance in the bathroom trash can as Juliette rubbed her back. 

"Sean, Rosalee just threw up," the redhead muttered into her headset. She paused for a moment. "Sean says they're still trying to get ahold of them. He wants to know if you want to sit out for a bit..." Another pause, and Juliette's gentle hand on Rosalee's back becomes a fist. "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW? Sean, you can't let him do that! Ugh, no, I'm not telling her that, you tell her!" Juliette ripped off her headset and handed it to Rosalee. She put it on.

"Tell me what?" Sean sighed deeply.

"Rosalee, honey, I'm sorry, I just got a call from Ian. He said, and I am quoting, that you "need to cheer the hell up or you're out of a job." He also said that if you don't get back to the desk, you're getting taken off lead. I'm sorry." Rosalee almost collapsed. Ian really was heartless! 

"It's his fault! It's Ian's fault!" Rosalee snarled. 

"I know, Rosalee, but he's the boss. I'm trying everything I can to get ahold of them. Let's get through this and we'll go from there, okay?" Rosalee sighed. What choice did she have? She handed the headset back to Juliette. Juliette replaced it with an exasperated sigh.

"This is fucked up, Sean, and you know it... yeah, okay. Come on, Rosalee..." Rosalee sighed and followed Juliette back to the desk. Nick had his head in his hands and his shoulders were shaking slightly. Rosalee suddenly felt very selfish; Monroe may be her lover, but he's also Nick's best friend. Rosalee rubbed his shoulders gently; he lifted his head, and his eyes looked glassy. He leaned back and put his hand on hers, giving it a squeeze as he exhaled. Sarah did a quick makeup touch-up on both anchors and they were rolling again. Rosalee tried to put it all from her mind and do her job. Maybe she sounded like a heartless robot, but she didn't care. Ian didn't care. Ian wanted to ruin her career. Fine. Give him what he wants. The 8 o'clock hour gave way to 9. The show was over at 10 and still no sign of their weather team. At some point around 8, a State of Emergency was declared. School had been cancelled since 5, and now only essential personnel were supposed to be attempting to use the roads. The police were deploying lifeboats to try to help flooded cars... Rosalee read the stories with a pang in her chest. Even if Monroe, Hank, and Drew had survived the wave, they could still have driven the van... no, stop thinking like that... Suddenly the door opened in the back of the studio, and Monroe entered, dripping water on the floor behind him. Rosalee stopped mid-sentence, and, not caring they were live, got up from her seat and ran to him. The cameras followed her as she flung herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. The tears finally came, but they were tears of joy, relief. She didn't care if her make-up was smearing or that he was getting her blouse wet; all that mattered is he was here and safe. His lips found hers and she kissed him desperately. They part, but remained nose to nose as Monroe wiped her tears away with his thumb. 

"Oh honey," she murmured. He pulled back and cleared his throat. He looked nervously up toward Juliette and Sean, who had come out of his office. They both nodded. Sean motioned to Bud to keep rolling. Monroe sighed. 

"This isn't really how I wanted to do this, but... well, I just had a near-death experience, and I need to stop putting this off." He dropped to one knee; there was a strange quiet in the studio as he reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out a ring box. He opened it, frowned, poured some water out, and turned it to his girlfriend. "Rosalee Calvert, I love you more than anything... And after this morning, I definitely love you more than the weather." A laugh went through the studio as Rosalee clapped her hand over her mouth. "Will you do me the honor of being my wife? I mean, will you marry me?" Rosalee's words were stuck in her throat. She couldn't speak, so she nodded emphatically. He smiled and stood, sweeping her into an embrace as the studio filled with applause. Rosalee grabbed his wet curls and kissed him fiercely. When they parted, he slid the ring onto her finger as she wiped her eyes. Rosalee all but collapsed into his arms. 

"Don't EVER do that to me again!" she said with a wet laugh.

"Let's see the ring!" Juliette called, and Rosalee held up her hand as Monroe kissed her cheek. Rosalee felt a body on her other side, and glanced up to find Nick at her side, smiling. 

"We'll be right back!" he said, blue eyes twinkling, and they cut to commercial. Rosalee turned back to Monroe, and he kissed her again, this time pulling her off the floor. He gently set her down, kissing her nose, before high-fiving Nick. The couple was surrounded; a towel was thrown over Monroe's head and he was led over to wardrobe to get out of his wet clothes; Rosalee was given another shirt, and she quickly changed, grateful her camisole was still dry. Drew and Hank were already in dry clothes, and they came over and hugged Rosalee as chairs were brought over to the anchor desk, following Sean and Juliette's directions. 

"Oh man, wait til you hear what happened..." Drew whispered into Rosalee's ear as he led her back over to the anchor desk. Nick came back to the desk, having finished a conversation with Sean and Juliette, still smiling widely. 

"Congratulations!" he said, putting an arm around her and giving her a squeeze. "I'm so glad he finally did it! He's been agonizing over it for months!"  

"Really?" 

"Really!" 

"Okay, guys, and we're rolling in five, four, three..." Juliette counted down, and pointed at Nick. 

"And we're back! For those of you just joining us, the governor has declared a State of Emergency with this hurricane, Hurricane Glinda, but that didn't stop our intrepid weather team from braving the storm, and, if you were with us at the top of the six o'clock hour, you saw we lost contact with them until just before the break... There he is! Monroe, get over here! We saved you a seat next to your new fiancée!" Monroe climbed up to the anchor desk, taking the empty chair by Rosalee's side. "Yes, in case you missed it, right before the break our beloved weatherman-about-town FINALLY proposed to my lovely co-anchor, Rosalee,  and she said yes! Now, I'm gonna tell you, when we lost contact with you guys, Rosalee was really upset; I mean, who wouldn't be? But she put on a smile and did her job and did it well! But now we wanna hear your side! You're on the pier, the wave hits... What happened next?" Monroe smiled slightly, but it was Drew who began to speak.

"Okay, the wave hits and knocks us over. Monroe and I manage to stay upright, but Hank here... Hank's camera, for those of you who don't know, is very heavy. Hank's a big guy, but that wave knocked him clear off the pier and into the water. Then this guy... this guy..." Drew ruffles Monroe's wet hair. "He dives in after Hank." Hank chuckled slightly. 

"Yeah, and I got tangled up pretty bad in the cord, so he gets me untangled and I let the camera go. He pulls me to the surface, and Drew helps me back onto the pier. THEN Monroe turns and goes back down for the camera! He pulls that thing back up like it doesn't weigh a thing! Rosalee finds Monroe slowly pulling her closer to him, and she doesn't pull away. 

"And how did you manage to do that?" Nick asked Monroe. 

"I was a lifeguard for a really long time. That kind of stuff you just don't forget, you know?"

"So not only did he save Hank, he also saved a very expensive piece of equipment," Drew clarified with a smile. Rosalee put her head on Monroe's shoulder, and he lightly brushed a kiss on her forehead. She was so proud of him. 

"So what was going through your heads during this?" Nick asked the trio. Rosalee was glad Nick was doing all the talking, because she was worried she'd cry again if she tried. Hank went first.

"I'm too young and pretty to die!" Monroe threw his head back in a laugh. Rosalee found herself giggling as well. "No, but seriously, I thought my number was up. And I honestly have never been so glad to be on this dude's team." He lightly punched Monroe's shoulder. 

"I was wondering  _exactly_  how much trouble I was going to get in if both of them died AND we lost the camera," Drew deadpanned. 

"And what about you, Monroe?" Monroe inhaled and shook his head slightly, looking into the dark brown eyes of the woman cuddled into his shoulder. 

"The only thing I remember thinking was 'I have to get back to her. I can't leave her like this."  He smiled at Rosalee and kissed her forehead again gently. "Going in after Hank... that was what I've been trained to do, you know? But I was really scared that I wasn't gonna come out alive." He ran a thumb over Rosalee's cheek. Rosalee smiled and kissed his cheek. Hank spoke again.

"And then it took us a bit to get packed up and back to the studio with so many roads flooded out. All of our phones got wet, so we couldn't call anyone... And the whole time, Monroe's sitting in the van going, "I'm gonna do it. I've been putting it off too long. I've had the ring for three months, I need to do it. I'm gonna go in there and do it. I don't care, I need to do it!" Everyone in the studio laughed at Hank's impression of Monroe. It was spot-on, and Monroe blushed. 

"So you've been holding out on me?" Rosalee finally asked with a laugh. Monroe smiled.

"Sorry, honey, I was waiting for the right opportunity... nothing else felt right." Rosalee pulled him into a kiss. Nick turned to Hank and Drew.

"Now, I'm sure a lot of people are wondering... Why on Earth were you out on the pier? It has no railings, the water was high and choppy, the storm violent..." 

"We went where we were told to go," Drew said flatly. 

"Interesting," Nick said. "And we're going to take another break before we wrap up for the day!" Once the cameras cut, Hank and Drew gathered up their things and put their chairs away. Monroe stood to do the same, but Rosalee latched around his waist. 

"I'm fine, honey. I'll be right over there with Sean and Juliette." He motioned over, and Sean was on the phone with somebody, talking in hushed angry tones. "Just finish up the broadcast and we'll go home and celebrate, okay?" Rosalee nodded and let him go. He carried his chair back to the storeroom and stood by Bud, who gave him a high five. The cameras rolled again, and Nick and Rosalee finished the broadcast. When the cameras cut, the studio door flew open with a bang. Ian Harmon stormed in, followed by his assistant. Everyone stopped what they were doing. Monroe wrapped his arm around Rosalee, holding her close. He knew Rosalee couldn't stand Ian, but Rosalee hadn't had the opportunity to tell him about Ian threatening her job yet.

"What the actual fuck was that?" Ian raged loudly. He made his way over to where Monroe and Rosalee were standing. "You two think you're cute? Or funny? What the hell was that?" 

"Ian, I told Monroe he could propose on-air," Sean said. "If you're going to yell at someone, yell at me." Ian was still staring directly at the couple, wild-eyed, nostrils flaring. 

"And they  _are_  cute," Nick commented, appearing next to them. "they are very cute. YOU just can't take a hint!" Ian turned to the lead anchor and sputtered. "Oh yeah, Ian, I know what you've been doing. I saw it a mile away. You want Rosalee, so you make Monroe do ridiculous stuff to try to embarrass them. And it didn't work. So you're going to have to get over the fact that Rosalee loves Monroe, and honestly nothing you do will change that!" The studio was silent, gaping at Nick for having the balls to voice what everyone already knew.

"Well, I could fire her," Ian said with a manic grin. "So many viewers could tell she was upset. Very unprofessional..." Monroe held Rosalee closer.

"You wouldn't," the weatherman growled.

"I would, and I will." 

"Umm, actually, Ian..." a voice called down from above them. Kelly, the social media guru, who was seated at her elevated desk in front of a three-monitor computer set-up, was raising her finger as her other hand flew across the touchscreens. "Most people think that it was cruel to make Rosalee keep going when she was obviously upset... and the proposal is already viral! Highest ratings we've had in... gosh, years! A lot of the posts I'm seeing want the head of whoever is responsible for sending Monroe out in that mess... Ian, the viewers love them and think  _you_  should be fired."

"As does the FCC." Sean said with a smirk, crossing his arms. "You're going to be investigated for that little stunt this morning, sending them out into a hurricane. As of right now, your ownership is suspended awaiting further inquiry. I am now in charge. And I want you to get out of my studio. Goodbye." Ian narrowed his eyes at Sean.

"You're bluffing."

"Check your e-mail." Ian pulled out his phone, and there must have been an e-mail to that effect, because he shoved his phone back into his pocket with a huff. He turned back to Rosalee.

"I hope you're happy!" Rosalee looked him in the eye.

"I am," she said defiantly before pulling Monroe into another kiss. The studio cheered as Ian turned and stormed out. When Monroe and Rosalee parted, Sean smiled. 

"Okay, guys, let's get this cleaned up! The State of Emergency is still in effect, but we've got plenty of food downstairs, so let's have an engagement party!" A cheer rose, and Monroe kissed Rosalee once more.

"You're my hero," she whispered quietly.

"And you're mine."


End file.
